Basketball ace Jordan sues over name row

23 February 2012 04:00 PM

Basketball legend Michael Jordan has filed a lawsuit in China against a Chinese sportswear company, accusing the firm of unauthorised use of his name.

The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame recipient and former Chicago Bulls star said that Qiaodan Sports, a company in the southern Fujian province, had built its business around his Chinese name and jersey number without his permission.

"It is deeply disappointing to see a company build a business off my Chinese name without my permission, use the number 23 and even attempt to use the names of my children," Jordan said.

"This complaint is not about money. It's about principle and protecting my name."

Jordan is known as Qiaodan in basketball-mad China, which has produced its own basketball superstar in Yao Ming. The moniker was registered by Qiaodan Sports, the statement said. It did not specify what compensation Jordan was seeking.

A Qiaodan Sports spokesman said he had not received details of the case from the company's legal department.

Over the past few years, it has become the Olympic partner of Mongolia, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan.

Jordan filed the case on Tuesday in a Chinese court.

NBA breakout star Jeremy Lin may face similar issues in China as a woman in the eastern province of Jiangsu has already registered his name, in Chinese characters, as a trademark, the Shanghai Daily newspaper reported.